More people die of Alzheimer's disease than prostate and breast cancer combined. Identifying the disease before major symptoms arise is critical to preserving brain function and helping patients maintain quality of life. A new study presented at the 2017 Annual Meeting of the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) demonstrates that a single dual time-point PET scan could identify important biomarkers of Alzheimer's disease.

The Alzheimer's Association reports that more than 5 million Americans are estimated to be living with Alzheimer's disease. This number is expected to swell as high as 16 million by 2050, when Alzheimer's and other dementias could cost the U.S. more than $1 trillion.

For this study, researchers assessed a procedure called dual time-point fluorine-18 Florbetaben (18F-FBB) PET imaging, which involves the injection of a single radiotracer, 18F-FBB, and two scans performed to observe blood flow and amyloid burden in the brain -- two biomarkers for neurodegenerative disease, including Alzheimer's.